Lost and Found(Closed for Zydrate)

[raiguy]

Aaron Peters was successful man. He taught what he loved. He was a college professor, teaching all sorts of biology classes. He loved to teach the young men and women who took his classes, loved to see their expressions change as he explained a hard concept, or showed them something interesting.

He had followed a friend's advice and invested part of his savings, providing a comfortable fallback for retirement. He was beloved by his students because he cared. He took grade disputes and tried to judge them fairly. He tried to keep the students engaged. He made the extra effort.

And yet, he wasn't happy. If you asked a student what Dr. Peters did, they would probably say he was either out on the town, or on a date. The females at his college seemed to flock to him. He was unfailingly courteous, treated the women like a true "southern gentleman". Yet, he never dated, hadn't dated for close to 12 years, if anyone had asked.

If anyone made it past his dating history and asked why he hadn't dated in 12 years, his answer was a simple one.

"I lost the girl who still has my heart"

~~~~~6 years ago~~~~~

Aaron Peters had his hand on the door of the church, fighting between his head and his heart. Finally, deciding a course of action, he opened the door and stepped into the church. He saw the pastor and the guests, the bride and groom standing at the altar. He kept walking, hearing the words he needed to hear.

"I object!" he said, nearly shouting it as loud as he could. He saw everyone turn their face. The groom looked pissed, the bride, surprised. The guests all shot him venom-laden glances. He could tell he was not welcome, but he had to say it.

"I'm sorry for interrupting this service, but I have to say something first. Jen, I'm in love with you. I have since the second grade when we first met. I tried to tell you multiple times, but you never seemed to understand how I meant it. I know I have no right to say this, but you needed to know how I felt, honestly for once," Aaron said, shaking like a leaf. He could feel the hateful glares from the groom and the congregation.

When he saw that Jen wasn't going anywhere, his heart felt like it was crushed. Here he was, a 22 year old man, crying in front of everyone. He did the only thing he could think of. He turned around and ran.

 

[zydrate]

The wedding gown had cost no less than $18,000. That was before alterations were made. And yet, alterations were minimal. Did one know how long Jen had worked on losing just enough weight to make sure she fit into that dress?

No. No one did.

OK, wait... one person did. Aaron. Aaron was Jen's best friend at the time.

Keyword: was.

Damnit, why didn't she see it? She and Aaron were always close, they had practically grown up together. When she told him that Mike had proposed, Aaron seemed happy.

Again, another keyword: seemed.

Shocked...nor, mortified was what Jen was when Aaron barged in on her wedding day and told everyone....EVERYONE meaning all 250+ guests, that he objected to the wedding. Her wedding. The wedding with which he helped out on with some parts.
*******

Jennifer was having flashbacks to that time 6 years ago... At least that was what she was doing when her assistant knocked on her office door, bringing her out of her reverie. "Ms. Watson? Your 3 pm client is here."

Jen recovered and nodded, making it seemed like she was doing something worth while, "OK, send him in." She told him.

It was time to stop thinking about the past. She had work to do. After all, Jen was a rising attorney, criminal defense no less. There wasn't time to have regrets...although, if she could have done things differently back then....she would've talked to Aaron. They would've gone off to talk about it all...

If she could talk to him now, tell him that she and Mike never got married.

 

[raiguy]

Aaron got out of his last lecture of the day. It was his favorite subject. He always found a way to make genetics more interesting to the men and women in his class. He taught at one of the largest institutes in the state of Colorado, and was one of the leading biology professors at the institute.

He loved these lectures. He had been able to get all 200+ students involved in the activity he had planned, and left the lecture hall feeling better. It was the anniversary of the day he had broken up Jen's wedding. 6 years ago today, he had run out on her life. He couldn't take thinking about her as Mrs. Sherrington. Mike was a good guy, but Jen deserved better than that cheating prick.

Aaron sighed, and then made his way to his truck. He drove to the local watering hole, hoping to not see anyone. He hated explaining why he was buying a rum and coke by himself. No one understood that after 6 years, Jen still had his heart, even if hers belonged to someone else.

Aaron sighed and sat down at the bar. His doctorate meant nothing to him without her. The only reason why he kept teaching was because he was happy to make a difference in the lives of his students.

He seemed young to be drinking alone, or to be a Ph.D recipient in biological sciences, but sure enough, he was. That was what happened when he ran out. He dedicated his life to his education, and then the education of his students, to keep his mind off of Jen. Unfortunately today was the one day that never got away from him.

 

[zydrate]

Good lord, she needed a drink.

After a day like today in court, Jennifer needed to unwind. She had called up her best friend Maria, who told her where to meet, some little bar where the locals went.

That was fine with Jen since she was new in town still...OK, well, not new since she only moved here less than a year ago. And all that time, she had not really gone out, only on business dinners... besides, who had time for dates when she was busy with getting her career in order?

Dressed in her usual business attire, a ladies suit with heels, Jennifer mixed in well with the crowd, who all seemed to be talking with their own little groups.

Now, just to find Maria...

 

[raiguy]

Aaron loosened his tie, then finally removed it completely. He motioned for another beer, then took a sip. Today sucked. Not because of his students, not because of his staff members, but simply because he had run away from his problems. He had left Jen standing there, and then let her get married to Mike.

Aaron took another sip, then made his way to a booth. He bumped into a woman in a dress suit and apologized, never really looking at her. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to run into you," he said, his eyes on the booth he wanted to grab before anyone else did.

He finally reached the booth. It was one of the lesser used booths, since it was further back in the bar. He smiled as his friend Todd came and sat next to him.

"Hey buddy, everything okay?" Todd asked.

"Check your calendar," Aaron said. Todd was the only person who Aaron had told everything to, and was really the only guy to not give him trouble. He saw the looks of anguish every time Aaron's past was brought up.

"Well, here's to hoping that the past somehow finds you and corrects itself in your future," Todd said, tapping his glass against Aaron's.

Aaron grunted in response, and then went back to drinking. He didn't bother scanning the crowd. He didn't want to see a face that reminded him of his cowardice all those years ago. He knew he hadn't changed since that day. He had maybe lost a bit of weight and changed the style of his glasses, but everything else about him remained the same.

 

[zydrate]

"So," Maria said to Jen after they ordered their drinks, "I know it's not your thing but I have a friend I want you to meet and--"

"NO, Mari, you didn't?!" exclaimed Jen, who had a feeling this wasn't just some regular meeting of two friends. Nope, Maria sounded a little too excited on the phone.

"OH yes I did, come on, I see them," Just so Jen couldn't say no, Maria grabbed her friend's arm and dragged her across the crowded bar, "It's been too long Jen, hell, it's been never since you've moved here that I have seen you go on a date with anyone!" She shouted to her.

"Jeez, why not just shout it out to everyone here, Mari?!"

Maria just laughed and called out, "Todd!" As she and Jen walked up to the table, "Hey Todd, here we are," Maria pulled Jen around her and toward the table, "This is my friend Jen."

Before Jennifer could apologize for Maria's behaviour and boldness, she saw the one person she thought she'd never see again...

"Aaron?!?!"

 

[raiguy]

Aaron looked up after hearing his name spoken. He hadn't paid any attention when Todd started talking to the two women who approached the table. He was used to Todd trying to get him to date. He would never say it, but he was thankful for it. It kept him just a little bit sane, even if he'd never agree to it.

Aaron stared into those eyes, recognizing them. He wouldn't have missed them in a crowded room.

"Jen?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. He felt the acute pain in his chest from those years flaring up. He could feel the tears coming, knowing it was her.

He never thought he would see her again, not after her marriage, but he also didn't know how much it would hurt. He looked at Todd and then whispered under his breath, "You bastard," before standing up and starting to head for the door. He didn't know if he could handle the pain and emotions from seeing Jen.

 

[zydrate]

Jen muttered a curse under her breath when she found herself staring at Aaron. Just the sight of him took her breath away. Her heart and mind protested as both argued that she was still mad at him or perhaps she wasn't...

When he got up, her heart raced, he was going to talk to her? Hug her?

No... he didn't say anything and instead, he turned on his friend, Maria and more importantly, Jen and walked off. Well, stormed off was more like it.

Looking at both Maria and Aaron's friend, Jen saw the confusion in their eyes but didn't say anything, instead, she set her drink down with a loud thud and took off after Aaron, calling after him.

"Aaron!" Her heels clicked against the sidewalk as she moved as fast as she could without running, "Aaron, damnit! Wait!" She stopped, frustrated, "I didn't marry Mike."

 

[raiguy]

Those words stopped Aaron dead in his tracks. She hadn't married Mike? What the hell was going on?

Aaron turned around, facing the apparition of his past. "What do you mean, you didn't marry Mike?" he asked as he slowly walked back towards her. He stopped about a foot away from Jen, staring at her. Why hadn't she married Mike?

"Why didn't you marry him? Where have you been?" Aaron asked, then looked down at the ground. "What have I done?" he whispered to himself, not realizing he said it loud enough to be heard.

His heart was pounding in his chest as he looked up at Jen. She hadn't changed. She still had those beautiful hazel eyes. She had cut her hair, but he instantly knew her as the girl he was still madly in love with.

His heart was hurting. It felt like his chest was about to explode. Some of it was pain, but most of it, he realized, was...hope. Was he hoping that maybe, just maybe, he would have a chance to fix the past?

"I'm sorry," he said, blurting it out. He was sorry for everything, for not supporting her and Mike, for tearing her wedding apart, for leaving her, for ignoring her for the past six years. But he was most sorry for never telling her how he felt in all the years they had known each other, for being a coward and hiding his true feelings.